Gas prices could reach ‘apocalyptic’ levels during hurricane season, oil expert warnsBy Thomas Barrabi
June 24, 2022
Gas prices could climb well above their current near-record levels to “apocalyptic” heights if hurricane season results in significant disruptions for US oil refiners, an industry expert warned Friday.
The national average gas price was hovering at roughly $4.93 as of Friday or about nine cents lower than its all-time high reached on June 14. Oil prices have also ticked slightly lower, holding at about $107 per barrel after trading near $120 earlier in the month.
But positive trends and efforts to lower prices could be “overwhelmed if we have an active tropical season” that impacts domestic refining efforts in the Gulf of Mexico, OPIS energy analysis global head Tom Kloza told Fox Business Network on Friday.
“I think for gasoline, we go back above $5 and apocalyptic numbers come into play with hurricanes,” Kloza said. “The thing that people have to watch and is really insidious for inflation are the values for diesel and jet fuel. Stocks of those fuels are not building, they’re tight internationally and that’s where we’re going to have to pay the piper in the last 100 days of the year.”
Hurricanes in the Gulf can shut down production and lead to higher gas prices in what would be a particularly damaging outcome given the chaotic state of the global energy market. In 2017, US gas prices hit two-year highs after Hurricane Harvey impacted fuel production and shipments.
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Source:
https://nypost.com/2022/06/24/gas-prices-could-reach-apocalyptic-levels-during-hurricane-season-oil-expert/
